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Published Irv the Interest of H&rdwood Lumber, Ame'ica.n Hardwood Forests, Wood Verveer Industry. H&rdwood Flooring. tJOf A 



H&rdwood Interior Finish, Wood ChemlcBLls, Sai.w Mill a.nd Woodworking MsLcKlrvery. QAM 



Vol. XXXI. 



CHICAGO, FEBRUARY 25, 1911. 



No. 9. 



Published on the lOlh and 25lh of each month by 



THE HARDWOOD COMPANY 



HENRY H. GIBSON, President LOUIS L. JACQUES, Scc'y and Treas. 



Sixth Floor, Ellsworth Bldg., 355 Dearborn Street, Chicago, 111. 



Telephones Harrison 8086-8087-8088 

 REPRESENTATIVES 



Eastern Territory 

 Northern Territory 



Jacob Hollzman, 5254 Larchwood Ave., Philadelphia Pa 

 E. W. Meeker, 355 Dearborn St., Chicaeo, II 



TERMS OF ANNUAL SUBSCRIPTION 

 In the United Slates, Canada, Philippine Islands and Mexico , $2.00 

 In all other countries in Universal Postal Union .... 3.00 



Subscriptions are payable in advance, and in default of written orders to 

 the contrary are continued at our option. 



Entered as second-class matter May 26, 1902, at the Postoffice at Chi- 

 cago, III., under act of March 3, 1879. 



Advertising copy must be received five days in advance of 

 publication date. Advertising rates on application. 



General Market Conditions 



The voltniie of liuidwuucl lju»iijrh> iliuing the last fortnight lias 

 heeu disappointing. There was quite a spurt of trade in the early 

 days of February, but reports from the trade centers of the country 

 over indicate that there has been a material diminution in demand 

 during the last few days, which is almost uuaccountable. There 

 -seems to be a spirit of general hesitancy in all lines of business. 

 This condition may be accounted for by the very bad weather con- 

 ditions that have prevailed, and to some extent by the uncer- 

 tainty of pending legislation. 



l"or some time there has been an attempt on the part of yellow 

 pine producers to secure a considerable advance in prices, and per- 

 haps this has militated indirectly against hardwood purchases. 

 The hardwood situation is in much better shape than the building 

 woods, as there is no surplus of any variety of hardwood in either 

 first hands or in the possession of the jobbing trade. As a matter 

 of fact stocks of desirable hardwoods .are short the country over. 



In northern woods the generality of producers advise that they 

 have little or no lumber of any variety in shipping condition for 

 sale, and a good many manufacturers in both Michigan and Wis- 

 consin have made advance contracts for output which will absorb 

 ~ the larger proportion of their production for months to come. 

 2 In southern woods plain oak in both the white and red varieties 



1 



X 



and of higher qualities are the stiffest items in the list, and the 

 demand still remains fair at very good v.;lues. 



The demand for quarter-sawed white oak is far from satisfactory 

 and there seems to be a slight weakening in the prices asked. 



Bed gum still remains one of the strong items, with very little 

 stock offered. 



Ash and hickory are slack. 



The situation with )iopIar and cottonwood continues normal and 

 unchanged. This is true of the general run of the minor hardwoods. 



The dealers in mahogany and other foreign woods report a nor- 

 mal demand with prices stationary. Eight now there seems to be 

 a renaissance in the production of the higher types of furniture 

 which demand mahogany, Circassian walnut and the best grades 

 of oak. 



Considering the time of year, the inclement weather conditions 

 and the uncertainty of pending business legislation, there is 

 nothing particular!}- unseasonable in the fact that the hardwood 

 trade is slack. Optimism prevails among manufacturers and job- 

 1 ITS alike, and it is believed that with the advancing season there 

 will be a material -improvement in affairs. There is absolutely no 

 menace in existing conditions. 



There is a good deal of eomplaiut not t.nly in the hardwood trade, 

 luit among business men generally, of slow collections. On the 

 other hand, money is accumulating in the hands of bankers and 

 they show material increases in surplus. Money is fairly easy and 

 while bankers are scanning cjedits very carefully, anyone who 

 has any license to borrow money is able to secure it at fair rates 

 of interest. 



Building operations in commercial centers are running along in 

 large volume, and while steel and concrete are cutting a consider- 

 able iigure in the materials employed, there is still a large volume 

 cif lumber going into consumption in construction worlc. 



It is fair to presume that there "will be an increased demand 

 from railroads and corporations -within the next month, -which will 

 tax the capacity of hardwood manufacturers to supply. 



^Notwithstanding the fact that the hardwood trade is slow at the 

 present time, there is every reason to believe that trade will assume 

 normal proportions in a very few weeks and business will be back 

 on a satisfactory basis. 



Later. — Since the above market conditions report was prepared, 

 later reports indicate quite a substantial revival of trade in Mem- 

 [ihis, St. Louis and several of the eastern citie.s. \ good many of 

 the large southern hardwood ojierators also r(>port a material increase 

 in demand. 



Efficiency of Manufacture 



Henry M. Hyde, in a leading eastern weekly- magazine, publishes 

 an article under the heading "Education's New Gift to Business," 

 in which he tells how very valuable casein products are now pro- 

 duced from skimmed milk, which to a l.-.rge extent formerly went 

 to waste; how newly discovered enamels are being made of much 

 higher quality at lessened cost; and recites several other items 

 of recent invention and manufacture that are securing a lot of 

 cash revenue from material that was formerly regarded as waste 

 product. 



The writer contends that the mass of American business men 

 as traders and organizers are the wonders of the world, but as 



